


The Halloween Party

by Emily_F6



Category: Skip Beat!
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-28
Updated: 2014-09-28
Packaged: 2018-02-19 03:00:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 19,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2372009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Emily_F6/pseuds/Emily_F6
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Unable to attend her school's Halloween Party and excluded from her classmate's party, Kyoko realizes just how many friends she has.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Invitations

Friday

"HAPPY HALLOWEEN!" The banners and posters were hanging from the walls, the lockers, and even the ceiling, turning the hallway in Kyoko's school into a sea of black and orange. Frowning, she walked up to one to get a closer look.

EVERYONE is invited to a special Halloween Ball Come join your classmates as we celebrate this American Holiday! Monday, October 31st 9:00 PM in the gym Costume Required

Kyoko signed and headed to class. She had to be Setsu that night, and 'Cain' was expecting her to join him at the hotel at 8. There was no way she could go. 'I don't have a costume anyway.' She told herself firmly. Images of dressing up as a princess stopped her in her tracks as her classmates swerved to avoid the girl staring off into space. 'I could be Cinderella! With a ball gown and glass slippers and…'

"Mogami-san, are you planning on joining us?" She jumped at the teacher's voice and realized that she was now alone in the hallway.

"Um…yes. Sorry!" She bowed quickly and hurried to her seat amidst the snickering of her classmates.

"Okay everyone, today..."

"Are you going to the Halloween Ball?" Kyoko heard Izumi Agata whisper. Her ears perked up as she glanced at the girls beside her.

"No. I have work all day and I start my new drama on Tuesday so I'm just going to Mizuki-chan's party. What about you?"

"Same. I'd rather go to hers than…." The girls grabbed their pens and pretended to be taking notes as the teacher turned back to them.

After class Kyoko approached her classmates. "Agata-san, when is Mizuki-san's party?" She caught a look of surprise quickly covered by fake cheer.

"What are you talking about, Kyoko-san? The school is holding the Halloween Ball. It's at 900PM this Monday."

"No. I meant…." She trailed off when she saw the irritation in the other girl's eyes, and the guilty way the girl's friend refused to meet her eyes. "Oh, you're right. Sorry to bother you." She said coldly, turning away to hide the hurt in her eyes. 'Even now I can't be a normal high school girl. It's just like middle school, but this time, it's not because of that jerk. I still can't make any friends. What's wrong with me?' She made her way to her next class, holding her head high and ignoring the group of girls that suddenly quieted down as she walked by. 'This feeling…it's so familiar. I thought the bullying was over when Sho…. when that jerk…. when Ilefthim!Stupid Shotaro! Always ruining my life! It's YOUR fault I can't make any friends! Friends? MOKO-sam!'

As soon as school let out, Kyoko pulled her phone out and, ignoring the 2 missed calls, dialed Kanae's number. "Hello. This is Kotonami Kanae."

"Moko-san! How are…"

"I am currently unavailable. Please leave your name and number and I'll get back to you." Beep.

"Moko-san! It's Kyoko. I was wondering if you wanted to do something together on Monday! I have to do some Love Me work after school but I'm free until about 7. Or we could do it another time. Actually I just really wanted to see you…" Her voice trailed off and her eyes dimmed as she thought of the scene at school that morning. It wasn't just this party. Eating lunch alone every day, being the only student without a partner when projects came up, the only person to actually study during free period while her classmates passed notes and whispered around her, all of this was starting to make school more of a chore and less of the wonderful 'regular high school girl' experience she had been craving. Of course she would never complain. She was very grateful to President Lory to have this chance.

Kyoko jumped as she realized that the time for the message had ended long ago and she was standing frozen beside her bike. Hastily, she turned her phone off and was about to call back and apologize when her phone rang. Checking the caller ID, she smiled and picked up. "Good afternoon Maria-chan."

"Big sister! Where are you?"

"I'm leaving school. Why? What's wrong Maria-chan?"

"Grandpa said I could spend the afternoon with you if you were coming in as long as I didn't get in your way. Is it okay?"

"Of course. It's fine Maria-chan." She smiled softly, making a bicyclist passing by crane his neck and crash into the curb, which went unnoticed by Kyoko who was too busy thinking about what she could do with Maria-chan. "I just have to do some paperwork and then maybe we can do something? Does that sound okay?"

"Yes! I'm in the Love Me office with Ren-san."

"Okay. I'll see you…Ren…I mean Tsuruga-san is there?"

"Yes. He was in the Love Me room when I came to look for you…what's so funny Yashiro-san?"

Kyoko jumped on her bike and headed for LME, cradling the phone against her shoulder. "Did Tsuruga-san need me to do something?"  
"Hmm? No. I think he just wanted to see you…are you okay Yashiro-san?" Kyoko heard the muffled laughter this time and sighed.

"Maria-chan, you shouldn't say those kinds of things." She felt her cheeks go red.

"Why not?"

Unable to explain herself with Tsuruga-san obviously within hearing distance, she just told the girl to forget it and that she would see her soon.

When Kyoko reached the Love Me room, she found Maria on Tsuruga-san's lap, in the middle of telling him some story about school. She smiled softly at the gentle, indulgent look on Tsuruga-san's face. 'I'm sure that he would be an excellent father.' Shocked at the thought, she shook her head violently. 'He would be irritated if he realized that I was thinking such things about him!' Shoving her strange feelings away, she approached the two. Maria finished her story and turned to Kyoko.

"Big sister!" She leaped into Kyoko's arms, who was too busy smiling down at her adopted little sister to notice the gentle look on her sempai's face.

"Hello Maria-chan. Good afternoon Tsuruga-san. Where is Yashiro-san?"

"Good afternoon Mogami-san. Yashiro had to go clean up. He spilled his drink all over his new jacket." She ignored the fact that Tsuruga-san seemed rather happy about this.

"Oh. Did you need something from the Love Me section?"

"Hmm? No, I don't need you to do anything. I just had free time and thought that I would stop by. I was about to leave when I saw that you weren't here, but Maria-chan came by and I started talking to her. I have to leave now though if I want to make it to my next appointment. It was good to see you Maria-chan. Mogami-san." He smiled and turned to go.

"Tsuruga-san." He turned and flinched at the very large, very fake smile on his beloved's face.

"Yes?" He answered with a half-hearted smile, sure that he knew what was coming.

"Have you eaten breakfast and lunch today?"

He signed. "Mogami-san, I…."

"And before you answer, please remember coffee and supermarket snacks do not qualify as either breakfast or lunch." Her smile was so bright it was creepy and he winced as he realized that he probably should have realized that one day someone would his 'gentleman' smile against him.

"In that case, no, Mogami-san. I have not. And I don't have time to eat now."

"Tsuruga-san! As an actor you must…"

"Take care of my body! I get it!" He snapped, feeling his patience with this girl run thin. How could she show this much concern for him but never notice his feelings for her? Was she just toying with him?

He realized his mistake as her eyes filled with hurt and she quickly avoided his gaze. Sighing, he put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean that. I appreciate that you are concerned about me." He said softly.

"It's fine." He watched as she closed down, forcing a wall between them. Maria looked from one to the other, confused and scared. Quietly, the little girl backed away and sat down on the other side of the room where she could go unnoticed.

"No. It's not." His voice was gentle, but firm. "That was rude. I'm sorry." Struck with an idea, he smiled and squeezed her shoulder. "Hey, what are you doing tonight?"

"Huh? Nothing. My Love Me work will only take about an hour, and then I'm going to spend the afternoon with Maria-chan. Why?" She asked warily.

"I get done at 6. How about I pick you up around 6:30 and we can go to dinner? That way you can make sure I eat and I can apologize properly."

"Tsuruga-san, you don't have to…."

"I'd better go, Mogami-san. I'll see you tonight at 6:30. I can pick you up at home." He waved as he went out the door, leaving Kyoko frozen to the spot.

"Are you okay Big sis?" Kyoko snapped out of her daze and turned to Maria.

"Um, yea. I'm fine. I'd better get started on that paperwork so we can go somewhere."

About an hour later, she sat across from Maria in a nearby ice cream parlor as the little girl chatted away about school and her friends and Ren. She was having so much fun that it wasn't until a group of girls came in together that she remembered her earlier sorrow. Noticing the change on her Big sister's face, Maria stopped in the middle of a story about Ren and put her spoon down. "What's wrong, big sis?"

"Huh? Oh nothing." Kyoko pasted the fake smile on her face and managed to get Maria to tell her the rest of her story. The little girl, however, wasn't fooled and was determined to get more information from her Big sister.


	2. Requests

Kyoko stared at her menu, trying desperately to think of something to say to break the awkward silence. The restaurant was by far the nicest she had ever been to, all of her protests had died on her lips at the sight of Ren Tsuruga dressed in a black suit and tie. She took a deep breath and her nose was flooded with his cologne combined with his unique scent, making her smile softly as her thoughts went fuzzy. 'Must be some sort of magic. Or one of his playboy tricks. Either way, I can see how he could make any girl fall for him… any girl but me of course. My heart is carefully guarded and…well it just won't work on me.' Her grudges were desperately working to put the locks back on her heart, but for some reason they just wouldn't lock. Some had resorted to holding them shut while others were hard at work trying to design new locks. So far, there had been no success.

In the meantime, Ren couldn't stop staring at his 'date,' although he wouldn't dare say the word aloud for fear that she would never speak to him again. When he had called to let her know that she should be sure to dress up, he had never imagined that a simple short black dress and white jacket could look so beautiful. Her short orange hair was straight and held back on one side by a flower clip, almost reminiscent of Natsu, but her expressions were all Kyoko. The soft blush on her face when he had told her how beautiful she looked was enough to convince him of that.

Deciding that she was going to notice if he kept staring at her, he racked his brain for something to say. "So how was school?" He was stunned when depression seemed to settle on her like a cloud. "Um, Mogami-san?" She stayed silent, staring sadly at the menu, obviously lost in thought. He was about to prompt her again when the waitress approached them.

"Excuse me. May I take your orders?" She smiled professionally but didn't seem interested in either of them, which was a welcome surprise. Ren didn't feel like dealing with a screaming waitress asking for his autograph.

"Mogami-san?" He gestured to the girl who, not surprisingly, hadn't noticed either the waitress or Ren's prompting. Smirking, he turned to the waitress.

"We would like two large orders of frog legs." He said with a wide smile.

Through the fog of her depression, she heard only two words. Frog. Legs. Images of large frogs staring at her from her plate suddenly swam before her eyes. "NOOO!" Kyoko screamed and jumped up, knocking her chair to the floor, eyes wide in horror. The waitress took a surprised step backwards and the other patrons stopped talking and stared at the screaming woman. Ren buried his face in his hands, shoulders shaking with laughter. Mortified, the very red, nearly purple, Kyoko grabbed her chair put her face in her hands.

"I'll give you a minute." The professional smile was back, but the waitress's eyes were filled with laughter.

"Jerk!" She whispered harshly.

"I can't believe you did that." He managed between breaths.

"What did you expect me to do!"

"Come back to earth."

"Well I'm back."

"I'll say!" He managed to control his laughter and smiled softly at her. Blushing again, she turned her attention back to the menu. "As much as you've stared at that menu, you ought to have it memorized. So what sounds good?" She turned an even darker shade of red and stared to apologize when she looked at him. He head, cocked to the side, was resting in his hand, and he had a happy, relaxed smile on his face. Unable to stay irritated with him, she allowed herself to let her guard down.

"I'm sorry." She said softly. "I wasn't really paying attention to the menu. I just had a bad day at school and was sort of zoned out. How about the grilled salmon? It sounds good."

"I was only kidding. I'm sorry to hear that. Do you want to talk about it?" He leaned toward her and fixed his concerned gaze on her. She shook her head.

"No. It's nothing new, really. I've never had friends anyway, so it's not important. At least I have Moko-san." The waitress came back at that moment and they both ordered the salmon and the vegetables. While they were waiting for their food, Ren turned his attention back to her.

"You don't have any friends at school?" He frowned. "Do you not have time to meet anyone?" He asked gently, trying to understand but not wanting to hurt her any more than she already was. She wasn't fooling him. He could see the sadness and hurt in her eyes.

"It's not that. It's just that no one likes me." She shrugged and tried to look cheerful. "It doesn't matter."

"Are they mean to you?" There was an edge to his voice, and she shook her head to avoid his anger.

"No! I mean, not really. Just...not interested." He could tell that she was lying.

"Mogami-san, if someone is bullying you, I want you to tell me." His eyes were cold and narrow.

"Tsuruga-san, it's not something that you have to worry about." She was looking at him earnestly and neither really noticed as the waitress brought their food out. "I can take care of myself."

"But you don't have to." She stared at him, stunned. "You know, Kyoko-chan, I thought that by now we were at least friends." He was speaking softly, but his words seemed to echo in her head. "We've certainly known each other long enough, and I've thought of you as a friend for a while." When she didn't respond, he sighed and picked up his fork. "I'm sorry Mogami-san. I obviously misunderstood. Please disregard…"

"No." His looked up, fork frozen in midair, and his jaw nearly dropped at the gentle, unguarded smile on her face. "No, it makes me very happy that you think of me as a friend."

"Moga…"

"Um…" She blushed as she interrupted him. "Please, call me Kyoko-chan, Tsuruga-san." She said shyly, unable to meet his eyes.

He chuckled. "Alright Kyoko-chan. But there isn't a need for you to be so formal if we are friends. Ren will be fine." She blushed even brighter and wondered briefly if her face would ever return to its normal color. He wondered the same thing, but either way he didn't mind. 'Take that Yashiro. Hardly "small progress." Though if it took this long to go from Sempai to Friend, I wonder how long it will take to get from Friend to Lover.'

Despite being a bit on the cold side, the food was delicious, although Ren would have preferred Kyoko's cooking any day. They talked about Ren's day, then about Kyoko's Love Me work, and finally Maria until it was time to leave. When Ren insisted on paying, Kyoko's only protested for a few minutes, which Ren considered more 'small progress.' He drove her home and walked her inside.

"You don't have to walk with me, Tsu…Ren-san."

"Just Ren. And of course I do. It's dark and cold and you are a young girl. I could not, as a man, let you walk alone." He smiled at her blushing face. "You sure are doing that a lot tonight."

"Ren!" She whined. "That's so mean! You shouldn't point it out." He laughed outright at that.

"You're right. I apologize."

She gave him a mock glare. "You are a world class actor. Surely you can at least act 'apologetic.'" He laughed again, and then grinned at her.

"Good night Kyoko-chan."

She couldn't help but grin back. "Good night Ren." As the door shut, she placed her hands against her hot face and giggled as she remembered his smiling face. "That face should come with a warning label." She sighed and spent the next hour convincing herself that she was NOT falling for Ren. Her grudges, however, were already beginning to give up.

Kyoko woke up two hours early and groaned. She was falling in love with him. 'How stupid can I be. He obviously just sees me as a friend! If I told him that I felt anything else for him…. he wouldn't even want to be my sempai anymore.' The thought made her eyes fill with tears. 'No. I won't tell him. I'm an actress. I'll just act like we are just friends and nothing is different.'

But how did it happen? I knew that love was a horrible disease to be avoided at all costs! How could I let myself fall in love with someone when I knew it would just hurt me? As I heard the last of y locks fall I knew how careful I would have to be. She pulled the blanket around her and curled into a ball. But Ren is different. Surely he wouldn't hurt me like Sho. He would never purposely hurt hi s friend. He would be gentle when he told me. But then he would be uncomfortable around me, and see me less and less.' Tears soaked her pillow and she began to sob. 'Besides, he is in love with a high school girl…high school girl?' Kyoko sat up abruptly. She was a high school girl. She was about four years younger than him. Maybe, he was talking about me? She let herself think about that for a minute, and then shook her head violently. No. He still hated me when he told Bo about the high school girl that he liked. There's no way he would ever fall in love with me anyway."


	3. Confessions

Saturday

Kyoko dragged herself out of bed when her alarm clock went off. Having failed at falling back asleep, she had simply tried to rest. She looked at the clock. 6:00 AM. Mumbling complaints about playboys and friends, she stretched and started her morning routine. After taking a shower and donning a pair of white slacks and a green blouse, she grabbed her sandals and ran downstairs to get breakfast.

"Good morning Okami-san. Taisho-san" She bowed to them after setting her sandals on the floor.

"Good morning Kyoko-can. Did you sleep well?" The Okami-san had a knowing smile on her face, making Kyoko uncomfortable.

"Um…. yes. I slept well. Thank you."

"Who was that young man who dropped you off last night?" The Taisho dropped a plate in front of her with more force than usual and sat beside his wife, obviously waiting for an answer.

"Um, that was my se…friend. Tsuruga-s…Ren-san. Tsuruga Ren."

"Ah. Your friend. Well we understand. Just be sure to let us know if you won't be home at night so we don't worry." The Okami-san was smiling as she ate her breakfast.

"Erm…okay. Of course." The Taisho was watching her closely, and he looked rather angry. After she finished, she followed the Taisho to the kitchen. "Taisho-san, are you angry with me?" He turned and his face softened at the worried teen's face.

"No." He went back to cleaning his knives. She smiled and looked at the clock.

"I'd better get to work. Have a good day."

"Have a good day Kyoko-can!" The Okami-san came to stand by her husband. "I think she's in love."

"Hmmph."

Kyoko threw open the Love Me room in anticipation and wasn't disappointed. "MOKO-san!" She launched herself and the longhaired actress who stepped sideways, never looking up from her script, and Kyoko ran face first into the wall. "Moko-saaaan! That was so mean." She whined as she rubbed her nose.

"Well, don't throw yourself at me like that." She locked the door and, grabbing Kyoko's arm, threw her onto a bench. "Now what's wrong?"

"Huh?" She cocked her head, and Kanae could swear that she saw little floppy dog ears appear on her head.

"Mo! You know what I mean. I check my voicemail last night and the first thing I hear is a strange, depressed message that cuts off in the middle. Then you don't even bother recording an apology message. So what's wrong? Why did you suddenly want to see me?"

"Um…I missed you! I haven't seen you in a long time!" She took this opportunity to throw her arms around her best friend and squeezed hard. Kanae shoved her off.

"I saw you earlier this week." She glared at Kyoko. "Kyoko Mogami, if you don't tell me what's wrong right now, we are no longer friends!" At Kyoko's silence, she stood abruptly. "Well, apparently we are done here. I'll just…."

"NOOOO MOKO-saaaaan! I"ll tell you! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME!" She threw herself as the irritated actress's feet and gripped her ankle.

"MO! Sit up! Get off the floor. You are an actress! An actress shouldn't act like this." Once Kyoko and Kanae were in their respective seats, Kyoko began.

"There's a Halloween Party at my school on Monday. But I can't go because I have….the Dangerous Mission at 8."

Kanae's eyes narrowed. Her expression clearly said thisbettergetworse. Nervously, Kyoko cleared her throat. "I was just upset because…" Kyoko took a deep breath, "because I found out that someone was having another Halloween Party and when I asked when it was they pretended not to know what I was talking about and I don't have any friends at school and the girls are all mean and it reminds me of when I lived with Sho and all the girls hated me because I lived with him, but now I don't live with Sho so…" She took a deep breath. "I can't blame it on Sho anymore. I'm just not likable." She stared miserably at her clasped hands and tried not to let her sorrow show.

Kanae stared at her friend, unsure of what to do. Not having friends had always been a choice for Kanae. Friends were distracting and irritating and required too much from her. But Kyoko was different. The girl had wormed her way into Kanae's heart and now she was firmly lodged there. Seeing her friend obviously so upset made her heart ache in a strange, unfamiliar way. Hesitantly at first, she leaned in and wrapped her arms around her orange haired best friend.

"Kyoko, you are not unlikable."

"But Moko-san…"

"MO! Shut up and listen for a minute! You are not unlikable. Those people are all jerks, okay? If they don't see how amazing you are, they don't deserve you as a friend anyway. You have a lot of friends anyway."

"But…"

"Would I lie to you!" She shoved Kyoko back, uncomfortable with how nice it felt to hug her friend willingly. "You have me. Maria-chan. Those three from that show you do Bo on. A lot of people from Dark Moon, from what I saw at that stupid Christmas Party. Even Tsuruga and his manager are your friends!" She stopped as surprise, happiness, embarrassment, irritation, fury, and then more embarrassment showed on her friends face. "Kyoko!" The girl jumped and stared at her friend, realizing her mistake. "What happened with Tsuruga?"

"Um…what makes you think anything happened?" She grinned and scratched her head.

"Because of that look on your face! Mo. Unless you are falling for his manager." She trailed off, grimacing.

Kyoko sighed and related the events of the previous night. "Moko-san," she concluded, "I think I'm fa...fa…falling in…lo…love…with Tsur…Ren." She stuttered, eyes wide in fear.

"Really? Never would have guessed." Kanae deadpanned.

"What am I going to do Moko-san! How do I act around him? What if he finds out? He'll hate me! And he'll never want to speak to me again!" She paused. "Well, maybe not hate me…but he'll be uncomfortable and…and…and he'll avoid me and it will be just like when I first came here!" She sobbed out. Kanae sighed at her dramatic friend.

"If you are that scared of telling him, I can't understand why you can't just act the way you always have."

"But if he finds out…"

"Why do you like him?"

"What?" Once again, the dog ears popped up on her head. Kanae wondered briefly how she did that as she sent up a prayer for patience.  
"Why. Do. You. Like. Tsuruga."

"Um…Moko-san. I can't answer that!" Her face flushed a deep red. Kanae sat back and waited. "Um…well…he's just…him." Kyoko shrugged and stared at the floor in embarrassment, hoping that Kanae would let it go. No such luck.

"Kyoko, seriously. List some things that you like about him." No response. She tapped her fingers to show her irritation.

"Um…he's a good actor!" Kanae stared at her in silence. "I admire how professional he is. And…he's considerate. Usually friendly. Gentle." Her eyes grew softer. "Caring. Sweet. He has a temper, but he's so sweet to me that it makes up for it. He's always looking out for me. He makes me feel….safe. And…cherished." She trailed off, not noticing the stunned look on Kanae's face.

'She really is in love.' "Okay." She said softly. "Would a considerate, friendly, gentle person hate you because you admitted to having feelings for him?" Kyoko didn't answer, and Kanae knew she had her.

"I'm just scared Moko-san. What if…I lose him completely? Having him as a friend is enough."

"Maybe for now. And that's fine. But it might not always be. When you're ready to talk to him, just give it a try. And, once again, if he doesn't realize how wonderful you are," 'which, of course, he does, because he loves you so much it's painful to watch' "he isn't worth your time anyway. And if that happens, you still have so many people who care about you. Including me. Well, mostly me, because I'm your best friend." Her cheeks grew red at the embarrassing confession she had just made, but Kyoko's arms were crushing her before she could take it back. "MO! Get off! If you ever tell anyone what I just told you, I'll never speak to you again! Understand?"  
Kyoko giggled at her flustered friend. "I understand, Moko-san."

The idea was so simple that it couldn't fail. But the thought of initiating it, much less putting it all together, was simply too much for her to grasp. Not to mention this would show everyone just how much she cared for her strange friend. Remembering the look in Kyoko's eyes earlier that day, Kanae sighed and dialed the number that she had stolen from her friend's phone.

"Hello?"

"Tsuruga-san? This is Kotonami Kanae, and I need to talk to you." She glared at the hideous pink lockers.

"Why? Is it about Kyoko? Is she okay?"

Snorting at his obviously panicked voice, she considered telling him that Kyoko had been in some horrible accident just to get his reaction, but decided that teasing him would only make his help harder to secure. "As of ten minutes ago, Kyoko is fine. I, however, need to speak with you. But it is about Kyoko. When can you meet me?"

On the other line, Ren nearly laughed at the girl's irritated tone. She had never gone out of her way to speak to him, and he was often amused by her strictly professional behavior, but if she wanted to speak to him about Kyoko, then he was willing. "I'm just finishing up now. I'll meet you in the Love Me room?"

"No." She said bluntly. "Kyoko might come back and this has to be a secret. Don't you have an office?"

"Yes. I share it with Yashiro though. Is it okay if he listens in?"

"Yea. I need him too anyway."

"Okay. It's on the fifth floor. Room 542. I'll see you about ten minutes?"

"Okay. Bye." He laughed when she hung up before he could get another word in. She obviously only deigned to speak to him because he was close to Kyoko.

When he arrived at his office, the long haired actress in the pink jumpsuit was glaring at him. "Good afternoon Kotonami-san."

"Yea. Good afternoon. Where's your shadow?"

Smirking, he unlocked the office. "On his way with some paperwork. It won't take him long." He ushered her inside. "Please sit."

The office had two desks, one covered in paperwork and the other with only a few scripts sitting out. She hesitated by the messier desk and looked at a photo of Yashiro with a young boy and girl at his side. "His sister's kids." Ren supplied when he saw the surprised look on her face. "They live pretty far away, so every once in a while he takes off to visit." She didn't respond, instead choosing to walk over to where he stood. On the other side of the office was a long couch and, across from it, two stuffed chairs. She took the couch while he choose to sit across from her in a chair. "So what can I do for you Kotonami-san?"

"Kyoko's upset." She said coldly.

He frowned, remembering when he had last seen her. "I beg your pardon?"

"Kyoko's upset!" She said again. He cocked his head again, and she was horrified to see the familiar little puppy ears pop up. "Ugh!" She shook her head irritably and decided to just get on with it. "There's some Halloween Party at her school on Monday, and she was sad because she couldn't go. She has her 'Dangerous Mission' that night." She saw the look of shock on Tsuruga's face but chose to ignore it. "So she heard some of her classmates talking about another party but when she asked them about it they were rude to her and she thinks that, since she doesn't have any friends there, that she is unlikable. Plus it is reminding her about her past with Fuwa." She caught the hatred in his eyes but, once again, chose to ignore his reactions. "So I want to cheer her up."

"Alright." He said carefully. "How?"

"We" she stressed the word "are going to throw her a party. A Halloween party. An over-the-top magnificent costume party. And we are going to invite all her friends." She didn't seem to happy about it.

"Um…okay."

"And it's going to be Monday afternoon, and she can leave from there to do whatever it is she needs to do."

"Um….Kontonami-san?"

"What?"

"You realize that it is Saturday?"

"Yes."

"Do you understand what you are saying?"

"Of course."

"So you know who we will have to go to if we want to plan an extravagant over-the-top costume party and invite all of Kyoko's friends, all in about one day?"

Sigh. "Yea."

"Are you sure you want to do this?"

"For her, it's worth it."

Yashiro burst in to the room. "Sorry! I had to pick up some more paperwork from…" He met the two at the door, both looking very grim. "What did I miss?" He asked his charge.

"Come on Yashiro. We'll fill you in on the way."


	4. Offers

President Lory leaned back in his chair and smiled. Ren resisted the urge to roll his eyes at the President's mob boss attire. Several large men in suits and hats with (what he hoped were) fake guns strapped to their hips guarded the doors. He has almost asked the man who had showed them into the office, complete with Italian accent, how much he was being paid to do this. However, he had been distracted by the thick cloud of cigar smoke surrounded who he assumed was the President. As Kanae made her case, the President's white teeth stood out through the smoke. 'How does he do that?' Ren wondered.

"Okay Kotonami-san, let me make you an offer you can't refuse." Ren dropped his head into his hands with a SMACK and groaned. Yashiro and Kanae just looked confused. "I'll throw this party for you. But in exchange I want you to do a little something for me. If you catch my meaning." He nudged a (once again, hopefully) fake gun forward, while the trio stared at him in horror. Suddenly the room was filled with a flash and his booming laughter. "Did you get their faces, Maria?"

"Yes grandfather!" Maria appeared with a small camera and immediately the smoke cleared from the room. Ren just put his head back in his hands. Yashiro and Kanae stared at the President dumbly.

The man laughed loudly. "You three should have seen your faces! Priceless. This is going in my private collection."

"Um…President."

"Hmm. Oh, yes Kotonami-san?"

"Are you going to help us?"

"Of course! You obviously love your friend! And what else am I here for than to spread love throughout the world!" Kanae glanced at the gun and the men in the suits. " "So, let's get started, shall we?" Maria ran over to Ren and he pulled her on his lap as the President pulled out a list of phone numbers. "Step 1: Distract Kyoko."

Kyoko's Love Me work, which consisted mostly of cleaning random rooms in LME that particular day, only kept her busy until about 3, but by that time her lack of sleep was catching up with her. Deciding to take a break before she went home, she curled up on one of the sofas in the LoveMe room. That was where Ren found her. Smiling at his good fortune, he crouched in front of her. "Kyoko-chan." He whispered her name, nudging her gently. "Kyoko-chan? What are you doing sleeping here?" She whimpered and batted him away like a cat. Chuckling quietly, he shook her again. This time her eyes cracked open.

"Go away." She mumbled, not seeing him.

"So you don't want a ride home?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you want a ride home?" She opened her eyes the rest of the way and jumped back in surprise at the close proximity of his face, effectively rolling off the couch. She yelped as she hit the floor. "Are you okay!" He jumped up and came over to where she lay stunned on the floor, taking her by the arms and helping her sit up. "Kyoko-chan? Are you okay?"

She winced when he touched her right shoulder, but quickly hid it. "I'm fine. Sorry. You surprised me."

"Let me see your arm."

"Huh? Oh, it's fine! I think I just slept on it wrong. It's…" She trailed off when he gently grasped her shoulder and watched her face in concern. When she didn't show any outstanding signs of pain, he relaxed and smiled at her.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to startle you." Standing, he offered his hand which she accepted shyly. "Are you sure you're okay?"

She giggled. "I'm fine. And if it won't be a bother…"

"Let's go."

They rode in companionable silence until Kyoko realized that they weren't headed for her home. "Um, where are we going?"

"Hmm? It's a surprise."

She smiled. "A surprise huh?" Suddenly she realized what she was doing. 'Oh my gosh….I'm falling for him. Well, more than I already was. What am I going to do? If I fall for him…well more than I already have…he'll…" Her best friend's words echoed in her head. 'Would he really hate me? It seemed like we are good friends. Don't friends become more sometimes?' In the movies they did, anyway. She had never really seen it herself. But what if he… She sighed. This was going against everything she had been telling herself since…well since Sho.. But was all of that wrong? 'What if he turns out to be like Sho?' "chan." She jerked at the voice.

"Huh?"

"I said, we're here Kyoko-chan." Looking up, she realized that they were parked in the middle of the forest. "Come on."

Ren didn't like the look on her face. As they had been driving, he had seen happiness, fear, contemplation, and then pain cross her face. At first everything was going fine. She even seemed to be enjoying his attempts at flirting with her. But then he saw the pain. What could she be thinking about? Or, more likely, who? Fuwa? Why did it always come back to him?

Suddenly, she reached out and grabbed his hand. He did his best not to jerk in surprise. 'Will this girl ever make up her mind?' He smiled. It didn't matter. This in itself seemed too good to be true. Part 1 of Step 1 (Distract Kyoko) was one of his favorite parts of this little plan, and although he was happy to organize a party for her, he was more interested in cheering her up. 'Even if she never acknowledges my feelings, as long as she is happy and by my side, I'm happy.'

"Are we there yet?" He chuckled. Kyoko had been following him through the woods for a while now and was starting to get tired, especially after a sleepless night and a long day.

"Almost. Come on, just a bit longer."

She was about to ask again when they came to a clearing and she found herself rooted to the spot. A large picnic basket sat on a checkered blanket in the middle of a grassy meadow surrounded by trees. The wind blew gently and a small stream ran at the edge of the trees. She took a few steps forward and watched as the water fairies and the wind fairies played together by the stream.

"Well are you hungry or would you rather watch the…uh look at the scenery?" Ren smiled and headed for the blanket.

She wordlessly joined him on the ground but kept her eyes on the fairies. They came over to say hi and she had to employ all of her self restraint not to answer. Then they gave up and headed over to Ren, who didn't seem to notice. A few perched on his shoulder and another hovered in front of his face.

Ren looked up when Kyoko let out a loud squeak and started to giggle, her red face in her hands. Leaning over, he reaching out and touched her shoulder.

Kyoko jerked her head up. She hadn't been able to stop her reaction when the fairy had kissed Ren's nose and then fainted, being promptly carried off by her friends. Now his face was, for the second time, far too close for her personal comfort, and she felt herself frozen as she stared into his dark eyes. The amusement drained from his eyes until he was looking at her in a way that made her stomach do flips and her blood rush to her cheeks. "Sorry, it's just….uh…there was…"

He couldn't help it. She was so adorable when she laughed like that, but more than that, when she looked up at him, he saw it. There was something there. Something more than the feelings that a friend would have. But he didn't know if she knew it yet. 'Do I initiate something? Should I speak up? Or should I wait for her? Would it hurt her if I said something, drove her away? Or is she afraid that…that I will hurt her like Fuwa? I would never do that. Not to anyone, but especially not to her. Doesn't she know that? She doesn't look scared.' He stared into her eyes, transfixed. Her cheeks were a light red, but nothing compared to what he expected. Her lips were parted slightly and that wasn't helping matters. 'No. I will not scare her away. Not when we are so close. But…just a little something can't hurt.' He turned his head to the side a bit and gently kissed her cheek. When she didn't stiffen or pull away, he wrapped his arms around her, wondering how he had ever survived before her. He could feel her heart racing and smiled a little. Get her to see him as a man: check.

He thought he was going to die when she wrapped her arms around him and rested her head in the crook of his neck. "Thank you." After all the confusion, all the fear, and all the pain, she felt like she was finally coming to the light at the end of the long, dark tunnel. Even if she wasn't ready for an intimate relationship with someone, she was willing to take a chance. Now she only had to wait and see how he felt, though she was getting a better and better idea.

He pulled away slowly, almost afraid that she would run or scream, or, even worse, just sit there, frozen in fear and shock. Instead, she had a sweet smile on her face. "So what are we eating?"

"Uh…um…I made food…. Uh…." He reached for the basket to cover his light red face. 'Why am I stuttering like a lovesick teenager…oh. Never mind.' "Just sandwiches."

She took one from him and looked in the middle. "Peanut butter and jelly?"

"Yea…it was the only thing that I was confident I could make." She laughed at that, and his heart skipped a beat.  
"You know, I don't mind cooking at your place."

"I know. But I wanted to do something for you. You would never let me cook if we went to my house, and even if we went out you attempt to pay. So I figured this was my only option. Oh, and don't forget…" He pulled out a Tupperware container which she opened excitedly.

"Grapes?" She giggled.  
"Peanut butter goes well with grapes. Everyone knows that." He shrugged with a big smile.

"You didn't know how to make apple slices?"

"Why would you say that!"

"Because I thought that everyone knew that apples go with peanut butter."

"Um…I thought that was bananas." She laughed, realizing the silliness of the conversation. They gave it up and decided to just eat them.

The two sat together long after they finished eating, talking about work and school until darkness found them laying on their backs, side by side, staring at the stars. She started shivering before long, and he thanked God for the opportunity to perform the ultimate cliché . He sat up and pulled of his jacket, draping it over them, and placing his arm around her shoulder. Instead of freaking out, she leaned against him and hummed happily. When he started to get cold under the blanket, he started to sit up when he realized that she was asleep. This time, he just picked her up and carried her to the car, wrapped in his jacket. Deciding that the drive back to her home might wake her up (actually he just didn't want to) he took her back home with him and settled her in the guest bed. As he slipped into his own bed, Ren decided to classify Part 1 of Step 1 a success.


	5. Preparations

Saturday

Party preparations were well under way. Today it was Yashiro's turn to distract Kyoko, as soon as Ren showed up at the President's home to help decorate. Kanae thought this a strange arrangement, but couldn't argue. Yashiro was the only other one Kyoko could do much with since Maria was so young and the President didn't want them wandering around alone, and Sebastian was busy making calls. The President had assigned tasks but was now side by side with the rest of the crew, constructing scenery and painting props. Miss Woods was in charge of costumes and had a small army of workers frantically making high quality costumes. Yashiro was planning his day with Kyoko.

"You aren't planning on making a move are you?" He jumped at Kanae's tone. She was looking at him almost…jealously? The look was gone as soon as it appeared.

"Of course not." He scoffed. "Kyoko is like my little sister. I'm just going to have her help me in the office, doing paperwork, chasing people down to give them meaningless…and meaningful…messages."

"What do you mean?"

"Well." He pulled out a small envelope and handed it to Kanae. She jerked her hand back when it brushed his but he didn't comment. "These are the messages that Kyoko will be sending out."

**YOU ARE INVITED**

**To Kyoko's Surprise Halloween Party**

**Where: The President's Mansion, Ballroom**

**When: Monday 5:00 PM**

**Dinner and refreshments will be served**

*****A REMINDER*****

**This is a surprise for Kyoko, so do not, under any circumstances, let her see this by order of the President of LME. Thank you.**

"The President is having Kyoko hand out the invitations to her own surprise party?" Yashiro laughed at Kanae's dumbstruck expression.

"Yes. Ingenious right? Kyoko will never suspect a thing."

"Hmmm. So you are just going to send her all around LME to deliver invitations?"

"Mostly, yes. I really do have some paperwork I need to do."

"Tell me about it. I feel like that's all I ever do around here when I'm not on set." He chuckled.

"Yes. It will be that way until you graduate from the Love Me section and get your own manager. I guess Ren used to be swamped with paperwork before I came along." He sounded rather proud of that fact.

Kanae hesitated for a second. "Do you like it?" He raised his eyebrows. "Being Tsuruga's manager?"

"Hmm. Yes. Very much. Ren is usually easy to work with and managing is a job I enjoy. What about you? Do you like being an actress?" Kanae's eyes softened for a moment and Yashiro held back a gasp. That was certainly an expression he'd never seen on her before.

"It's all I've ever wanted to do with my life. Even though I'm not a full fledged actress yet, I will be one day, and each day brings me closer to my goal. Yes. I am very happy as an actress." A thought struck him.

"Kotonami-san, I've been wondering. I know why Kyoko-chan is in the Love Me section. By…why are you?"

Kanae stared at him for a moment. Why was this man asking about her personal life. Her mind went back to the picture on his desk. Well, she knew something personal about him. She supposed it was a fair trade off. "Kyoko has trouble with romantic love. I just have trouble with family love. I can't stand my family."

"So you have no trouble with romantic love?" He asked, then felt his face heat up at the suggestion behind those words.

"I think it is rather pointless, but no, not really."

'How is thinking it is pointless not having trouble?'

Kyoko's eyes fluttered open when the light filtered in through the blinds. Unwilling to wake up just yet, she snuggled deeper into the blankets and pulled them up to her chin. 'So comfortable.' Staring at the ceiling, she absentmindedly realized that it looked different this morning. Then the smell of breakfast wafted in. 'That smells strange.' She frowned. The Okami-san and Taisho-san always made Japanese style breakfast for both their guests and themselves, but this smelled like…eggs? She sat up rigidly as understanding dawned on her. "I'm at Ren's." She whispered.

After using the bathroom, Kyoko quietly entered the kitchen, only to find Ren desperately trying to scramble eggs. Holding back a giggle, she watched as he dropped an entire egg in the skillet, then stuck his hands in the mess, anxiously trying to remove the shells. Fascinated, she watched as he jerked his hand out of the hot skillet and, sighing, dumped the entire mess into the garbage. From her position, she could see that the egg carton he pulled out was missing six eggs.

He caught sight of her as he went to replace the egg carton, and he had to admit that she looked beautiful even with messy hair and in crumpled pajamas. She also seemed to be enjoying his misery. "The way I see it, we have two options." She said with a mischievous smile. "Either you let me cook, or we go out to breakfast, because you sir are absolutely hopeless."

He signed and stepped back, gesturing for her to join him. "Good morning." He said quietly as she stood in front of him and cracked two eggs perfectly.

"Good morning." He could hear the smile in her voice and couldn't help but pretend that this would happen every morning. "What is your schedule like today?"

"Um…rather busy. The President wants to see me in about two hours. You?"  
"Didn't Yashiro-san tell you? He asked me to help with something today."

"Ah yes. I remember." He shoved his jealousy away, reminding himself of last night and the way that she had looked at him. His manager would never attempt to have anything more than friendship with Kyoko, especially since he knew how Ren would react if he ever found out.

After breakfast Ren dropped Kyoko off at LME and went to help prepare for the party.

Yashiro, who was sitting in his office, pulled on a latex glove and picked up his vibrating pone to read his text message. Step 1 of Phase 1 Compete. Please Initiate Step 2

The orange haired actress knocked on the door and greeted Yashiro with a cheery "Good morning!"

"Good morning, Kyoko-chan. I had a special assignment for you today if you don't mind."

"Of course not! How can I help you?"

"Well…" he pulled out a bag filled with envelopes, each with a person's name on the front. "I need these delivered as soon as possible if you don't mind. Everyone should be in LME today. If the person is not in LME, please bring it back to me and we can deliver those together."

"Um…okay Yashiro-san. I'll be back as soon as possible."

"Of course. Thank you again Kyoko-chan."

Kyoko stood in the hallway, going through the envelopes. The first one she pulled out was director Ogata. This began a long search throughout the building until, almost thirty minutes later, she found him talking with Kijima-san. Both men turned to her with surprised smiles. "Good morning Kyoko-chan." Director Ogata greeted her.

"Good morning Ogata-san. Yashiro-san sent me to give this to you." She smiled sweetly and handed the envelope to the young director. Ogata opened the envelope and read the invitation fully before he started to laugh. Kyoko cocked her head. "What is it Ogata-san?"

"Um! Nothing, Kyoko-chan. Please excuse me." He hastily placed the invitation in his pocket and tried to give her a normal smile. "Thank you very much." Kijima stood by, feeling left out, until Kyoko rummaged through her bag and handed him one as well.

"Here you go Kijima-san. I wanted to make sure that I didn't have to come and find you again. Please have a good day." She bowed and let the room.

It went on like this for a large part of the day. She had to search out Sawara-san, Director Annaka, Hikaru-san, Shin'ichi-an, Yuusei-san, and Momose-san, along with a few other directors she had worked with and some actresses and actors from both Box R and Dark Moon. Everyone responded in pretty much the same manner as Ogata-san, amusement and confusion. The Bridge Rock crew seemed to get the biggest kick out of the whole thing, and each one of them hugged her and said that they would see her later. Confused, she had just smiled and moved on. She wondered that she didn't see Chori or Kanae all day, but figured that they must be busy. (Indeed, Chori had been roped into helping with the party and was currently gossiping about Ren and Kyoko with Kanae where he could clearly hear them.) At the bottom of the bag were a few more envelopes. To her surprise, one was addressed to her Landlords, one was addressed to Producer Asami, and the last was addressed to Shoko. When she returned to Yashiro's office a few hours later, he could tell that she was exhausted and offered to take them to dinner before they delivered the remaining envelopes. Kyoko, however, insisted that they should eat at the restaurant where she lived since they would have to go there anyway, and Yashiro agreed.


	6. Confrontations

Kyoko opened the door to the restaurant, followed by Yashiro, and was greeted warmly by the Okami-san. Kyoko made the introductions and missed the Taisho's angry glare at Yashiro who stared back at him confused. The two sat at the table alone with the chef made their meal. Kyoko pulled out the envelope and handed it to the Okami-san who looked at Kyoko strangely, then laughed and put the envelope away. "It must be something funny, because everyone I give that to has the same reaction." Kyoko said with a smile, and Yashiro and the Okami-san laughed. Surprisingly, talking to Yashiro was nearly as easy as talking to Ren or Kanae, though she rarely got the chance. He asked her questions about acting and she responded with questions about being a manager. A few times the Taisho would peek at them from the kitchen, making Yashiro wonder if this was how the man treated all of Kyoko's friends. "So, Kyoko, why don't you live with your parents?" The girl froze and he couldn't help but be reminded of the expression on her face when he had asked about the Tea Ceremony.

Silently he watched as the girl's eyes dimmed and she sat her chopsticks down. "I'm sorry Kyoko-chan. You don't have to answer that if you don't want to."

"I'm sorry." She whispered. "It's just that, I don't really have parents." He stared at her, stunned. "Well, I never knew my real father. And my mother…didn't want me. So…I haven't spoken to any of my real family for years."

He stared at the girl with compassion. Yashiro had no idea why her mother would be so cruel, but he now understood why the girl was the way she was. An idea struck him. "Kyoko-chan, what about Hizuri Kuu?"

Suddenly the girl seemed to come to life. Her eyes sparkled, her posture improved, and she clasped her hands in front of her. "OH! Yes. My adopted father lives in California! I miss him very much, but we talk on the phone sometimes." After recovering from the heart attack she had given him with her change in moods, Yashiro gave her a kind smile.

"Not to mention her family here." They both turned at a gruff voice from the kitchen. Kyoko's eyes lit up and she jumped from her seat, throwing her arms around her other adoptive father.

"Of course!" She cried, turning to Yashiro with a smile. "The Taisho and the Okami-san have been just like parents to me." For a second, the gruff man's eyes softened, and he ruffled her hair.

"You'd better get ready to leave soon." He told the girl simply. She nodded and excused herself, running up to her room. Yashiro watched her for a moment, then caught the Taisho glaring at him.

"Um...I'm not romantically interested in Kyoko-chan." He was compelled to inform the man suddenly. "She's like...a little sister." The large man continued to clean his knives, apparently not listening. "It's my charge that likes her." He finally said.

"I know." The dark voice made Yashiro flinch.

"He...he would never hurt her!" Yashiro assured the man. "He really does care about her."

"Hmph." The man's cold gaze froze the manager for a second, then he sighed and pushed his glasses up.

"I don't understand why you would dislike Ren."

"It's not proper." The man said gruffly, and Yashiro frowned.

"I don't understand." The chef only continued to clean his knives in silence.

"Forgive my husband." The Okami-san emerged from the other room. "He's rather protective of her." The man grunted. "He thinks that, if a young man wants to see a young woman, he should ask her family."

Before Yashiro could respond, Kyoko emerged. "Ready Yashiro-san?" He gave her a tired smile. She had changed into a different outfit and was holding the other invitations. "Yes. We'd better hurry. It's going to be late by the time we are done."

Yashiro led Kyoko into Akatoki Agency, hoping that there would be no run ins with Sho Fuwa. The two women were invited because they had been friendly with Kyoko when she worked with them, and the President knew that Asami-san was a friend of Ogata-san. Therefore, both women were invited to the party. Sho Fuwa, however, was not. Yashiro didn't know if the President knew the whole story behind Fuwa and Kyoko, but he seemed to know enough. On the other hand, Yashiro knew nearly as much as Ren and was under direct orders not to let Fuwa near the girl. That's had been Ren's only request, and Yashiro planned to honor it.

The Akatoki lobby was not as fancy as LME's, but the receptionist was very friendly. She told them first where they could find the producer and they were able to easily find her and deliver their invitation. She smiled and told Kyoko that she would see her later. Shoko, however, was proving a bit more difficult. When they finally came to the room where they had been directed, they saw the name plate "Fuwa, Sho." Kyoko hesitated but Yashiro stepped in front of her and knocked on the door.

"Come in." A male voice from inside called, and Kyoko attempted to collect herself as Yashiro stepped inside. She quickly followed behind him. "Glasses? What do you want?" Yashiro ignored the insult and reached back to take the invitation from Kyoko who stood behind him, hoping that Sho wouldn't notice her. She was having a good day and didn't want Sho to spoil it.

"I have something for your manager. Where is she?"

"She's on her way back." Sho stood and made his way toward them. He stared at Kyoko who stepped beside Yashiro. "So what brings you here?" He asked with a smirk. "Decide to come crawling back?" He smiled as she bawled her fists and glared at him. However, her response surprised him.

"No. I'm here on an errand for LME. We'll wait for Shoko-san in the hallway." Yashiro walked out of the room, expecting Kyoko to follow, but realized his mistake when the door slammed shut and he heard a lock click.  
He immediately turned and pounded on the door. "Fuwa, you open this door now or I'll call security!"

"Oh shut it Glasses. I just want to talk to her." The way he said it made Yashiro freeze momentarily. Then he resumed yelling and attempting to break down the door. Kyoko fought against Sho who held her tightly against himself with one hand and covered her mouth with the other. Biting as hard as she could, she immediately released him when he squeezed her arm so tightly it made her hiss in pain. Walking with her awkwardly, Sho took them to a back room and slammed the door behind him, then promptly released her.

"What is wrong with you!" She screamed at him.

"Me? I just want to have a friendly conversation with my oldest friend and you act like that."

"What do you want Sho?"

"Where's the idiot actor?" She rolled her eyes.  
"Ren is busy today."  
"Ren? What happened to 'Tsuruga-san?'" He imitated her voice mockingly until he saw the blush on her face. "What? Why are you looking like that?" Understanding struck him. "Don't tell me you've fallen for him." He snarled.  
"Fuwa-san, who I 'fall-for'" She quoted him in a patronizing voice. "is absolutely none of your business. I'll do whatever I want with him, and there is nothing…" SMACK!  
This time he didn't apologize. He gripped the top of her arms and pushed her against the wall. Stunned she tried to shrink from him. She had felt many things for Sho in her life with him, but fear had never been one of him. But he looked so…so murderous. Why would he care what she did with Ren? She felt something drip down her face and realized that Sho had been wearing a ring.  
"Sho let go." She said quietly, willing her voice not to shake.

"Shut up and listen. You are mine! Do you understand me!"

"I am not yours! You threw me away and I don't want anything to do with you!" She screamed and tried to step on his foot, but he pressed himself fully against her, making her panic. "Sho, stop it!" He grinned down at her, his eyes cold.

"You are mine. Do you hear me?"

"Sho, please!" She tried again to push him off but she froze when he forced his lips onto hers and, gripping her wrists, squeezed hard. She whimpered in pain but stopped fighting him. Afraid to make him any angrier, she simply stood still until he let her go. All she could think about was Ren's words from the last time Sho had kissed her.

"The rule only works once for non actors." 'He'll hate me now for sure." She felt tears fall down her face and sunk to the ground. 'He'll hate me and he'll never forgive me for allowing myself to be taken advantage of again. I should have stayed closer to Yashiro san! I should have left first.'

Shoko returned to the room only to find Tsuruga Ren's manager beating on the door. He handed her the envelope, asked her to read it later in private, and begged her to open the door, all in one breath. She quickly assumed that Kyoko was involved and quickly unlocked the door, only to find Sho standing in the doorway of his back office, blocking the view of someone on the floor. "Sho! What did you do to her!" Yashiro panicked at that.

"Kyoko-chan!" He shoved Sho out of the way and knelt down next to her. "Kyoko-chan, look at me. Are you okay?" The girl lifted her face and he was stunned to see a long cut across her cheek with a bruise forming around it.

"Oh my gosh. Kyoko I'm so sorry!" Shoko had her face in her hands as she shook her head. "I had no idea that he would…I'm so sorry!" Sho just stood by, looking stunned.

Yashiro took her hand gently, but let go when she winced. Bruises and red marks were forming on her wrists and upper arms. "I'm sorry." He whispered. "This was my fault. I shouldn't have left you alone with him, for any amount of time. I'm going to call the President so he can sent a car to take you home. Okay?" She shook her head violently.

"It will worry Okami-san and Taisho-san." She whispered.

"Okay. Do you want me to call Ren?" She shook her head and sobbed.

"He'll….be m…ma…mad at me. He s…said that if I let him k…ki…kiss me again…..that the rule wouldn't…wouldn't work." She managed between sobs. Gently taking her arm and pulling her up, Yashiro wrapped an arm around her shoulders and let her out, pausing in front of Fuwa.

"I'll be contacting the authorities about this Fuwa-san." He glared at the younger man coldly. He nodded to Shoko. "Shoko-san, good evening." They sat in the back of the company car in the agency's parking lot, Yashiro not knowing what to do and Kyoko sobbing into her hands. Finally making the decision, Yashiro stepped out of the car and called Ren.

"Hello Yashiro-san."

"Ren we've got a problem." Quickly and in as little detail as possible, he told Ren about the incident with Fuwa. He could feel the anger over the phone. "Listen Ren, I know you're mad. But this can be taken care of. I'm going to speak to the President about this. As for you…"

"I'm going to kill him." He'd never heard that tone coming from Ren, but he pushed his fear aside and continued.

"Ren, Kyoko needs you. She thinks that this is her fault and that you will hate her because of it."

"Hate her!"

"Because of the 'Actor's Rule of the Heart' that you so conveniently made up to cover your jealousy. Now Fuwa has hurt her and, because of your stupid rule, Kyoko is hurt even worse." Silence. Then a sigh.

"Can you meet me outside of LME? I'll pick her up there and take her home."

"She doesn't want to go home." He glanced at Kyoko through the window and frowned as he saw that she was now rocking back and forth in her seat, crying. "She doesn't want to worry the Taisho and Okami-san."

"Fine. She can stay with me tonight. She's with the President and Maria tomorrow anyway. I can easily drop her off there."

"Okay Ren. You'd better hurry before the poor girl makes herself sick."

Ren hung up and ran to his car, telling the President that he would have Yashiro explain. He had just finished changing when he had received the call, so he jumped right in his car and sped to LME. Yashiro was standing beside the car whose door was open, trying to get Kyoko to talk to him. When he saw Ren, he stepped back and allowed him to scoop her up and carry her to his car. Yashiro said nothing as Ren drove away.

In the car, Ren didn't know what to say. It was his fault that she was so upset, but he knew that Fuwa had also hurt her. He could see a long cut on her face that was still bleeding and bruises on her wrists. He took her to his apartment, after parking, gently opened her door and carried her upstairs, whispering to her every few feet. When he reached his apartment, he managed to get them through the door and sat her on the sofa. Grabbing a blanket hanging on the back, he wrapped her in it and the sat down and held her. Rocking her back and forth, he whispered over and over, 'It's okay. You're okay. He's not going to hurt you. I'll protect you." Each of her sobs pierced his heart, but he continued to rock her until she quieted down. Gently he took her hand and looked into her eyes. "I'm not angry." He assured her. "When I told you that the rule only applied once I was lying. I was jealous and angry and upset, and I ended up hurting you because of that. I'm sorry. This wasn't your fault."

Surprised, she stared up at him. He seemed rather genuine in his apology, so she just nodded. She had been accustoming herself to the thought of being hated by him, and that hadn't been going so well. She jumped when she felt a wet rag on her face. While she had zoned out, he had gone to get a first aid kit and cool rags that he placed on her wrists. Wiping the blood off her face, he gently rubbed a cream on the cut.

"That will keep it from scarring. Your arms are going to be sore, and the bruises will stay for a while, but this should help." He wrapped cooling packs on her wrists.

"Thank you." She whispered. "I'm sorry to trouble you."

"Kyoko, you never trouble me." He reached out and took her hand, careful not to move her wrist. "You are my dearest friend, and I care about you." He wrapped her in his arms carefully, and she nuzzled against him.

'I love you.' She screamed in her head. 'I love you and I am falling more in love with you every time you do this!' Instead of voicing her thoughts, she kissed his cheek and whispered "Thank you" again before letting herself succumb to sleep.


	7. Outings

Sunday

Ren stared at the TV, not bothering to turn it on. Kyoko was still asleep. 'Either that or she just doesn't want to come out.' Everything seemed to be going well between them, and he had been surprised that she had only been upset by the thought of him being angry with her. Now doubts were plaguing him. 'Does she regret getting so close to me? Will she come in and revert back to 'Sempai?' Or worse, am I going to wake up and all of this was just my imagination?'

He understood what Lory was doing. Kanae had wanted to show Kyoko how many friends she had and how much they cared for her. Lory was killing two birds by distracting Kyoko and giving her time with her friends at the same time. But Ren suspected that he was getting more time with her than anyone else, and while he didn't think that the President had anticipated Fuwa's attack, he had a feeling that Lory didn't mind the turn of events too much since Ren was taking care of her.

The phone call with Yashiro had been…. interesting. As soon as he had dropped her off, he had phoned to see what the plan was. Yashiro told him that the President and Maria would pick her up at Ren's at around lunchtime, and afterwards Ren was to go to the President's mansion to resume work. 'How did the President manage to free my schedule for two days in a row?'

Afterwards, at Yashiro's insistence, Ren had been the one to call the restaurant where Kyoko lived to inform the Okami and the Taisho of Kyoko's whereabouts. Though the Taisho had only spoken a few words, Ren could nearly taste the hostility over the phone. He had been relieved when the Okami had taken the phone and thanked him for contacting them.

He let his thoughts wander to Sho Fuwa. He had quickly realized that any sort of confrontation would lead to either a stain on his image or Fuwa's dismemberment…or both. He clenched his fists as he thought about the blonde musician. 'Fake blonde' he felt the need to remind himself. He knew one thing for sure, that was the last time he was letting Kyoko near that man without himself present, although he didn't blame Yashiro for the incident. He dropped his head in his hands and groaned. 'Let Kyoko? Not only is she not mine to 'let' do anything, she would do as she wanted regardless. Heaven help the man that tries to control her.' He smiled fondly down at the carpet. 'Well then, I'll just have to make sure to be with her all the time so she's never alone with him…or hire an assassin.' He smirked at the idea.

For the second day in a row, Kyoko woke up in Ren's guest room. 'I could get used to this.' She thought, and then blushed brightly. 'I'm pretty sure that I love him, although I don't know how he feels. Still…I'm not ready to do….that.' Shaking the thoughts from her head, she picked her head up when she heard a knock at the door. "Come in!" She called.

Ren approached her quickly and knelt down beside her. "Good morning. Are you feeling okay?" She smiled. There was no pain in her arms or wrists, and the bruising and red marks had gone away quickly since they hadn't been to bad in the first place. She let her head drop and rolled over to face him.

"I'm fine, thanks to you." She said with a sweet smile. He clenched his hands so they wouldn't be tempted to touch her. She sat up and swung her legs around when he stood with his hands behind his back. "Don't you have work today?"

"Um…yes. I'll be leaving around 11, after the President picks you up."

"The President? I don't have work today?" She frowned up at him, and he smiled and took her hand, tugging her gently up, causing he to laugh, and leading her into the kitchen where bags of food sat on the table. "I see you learned your lesson." She laughed as he began pulling food out.

"He's not picking you up for work. He knew that Maria wanted to see you and said he would feel more comfortable if he came along." Ren lied smoothly. Well, it wasn't a total lie. Maria did want to see her, but the President was just going along to treat them. Kyoko retrieved the dishes and set the table in the living room.

"What have you been doing? Did you wake up early?" She wondered as she sat the table.

"Watching TV." He called, without thinking, from the counter where he was gathering the rest of the dishes. She looked in confusion, first at the TV, which was switched off, and then at the remote, which was on the bottom shelf of the TV table. Shrugging, she decided that he was just OCD about putting the remote back. The thought made her giggle a little.

He joined her at the table and the two dug in. The food was good, but to Ren nothing compared to Kyoko's cooking. "So what kind of work do you have today?"

"Oh…uh...you know. Just the usual. A…modeling shoot…. and a few interviews." She cocked her head. "So when are you shooting for BoxR again?"

"On Tuesday afternoon. Actually, it was supposed to be on Monday afternoon from 4 until about 7, but I got a call from the director who said that the shoot had to be moved to Tuesday because of…camera trouble?" She frowned at him. "Does that sound strange to you?"

"Oh no! That happens sometimes!" Ren lied quickly, realizing at the same time how much he was being forced to lie to her today and how much effort the President was putting into this.

"Can't they just get a new camera?"

"Uh…that would be quite a waste of money if the old one could be repaired, don't you think?"

"I suppose. But what if it is still broken on Tuesday?"

"Then... they will probably go ahead and buy a new one because they don't want to postpone filming for too long."

"Oh! Of course." She gave him a reverent smile and he wondered if she thought he knew everything. Actually, he had a feeling that they would probably just replace the camera, but he had never thought about it.

After the dishes were done, Kyoko went into the guest room to get ready. Ren knocked on the door and brought in a bag of clothes. "Yashiro picked this up and brought it by this morning." 'Lie.' He had lost track of his lies this morning. He actually had about four other new outfits in her size in the back of his closet for when she stayed over unexpectedly, though he would never tell her that. He liked seeing her wear something he had bought her, and she would never allow it.

"Oh. Thank you. I'll be sure to pay him back."

"Please don't worry about it. I gave him the money for it when he brought it by."

"Then I should pay…"

"No." His voice was firm and she didn't really feel like fighting it out. 'What was it he said about men buying me clothing?' She blushed for a second then looked down in the bag. There was also a hairbrush, a toothbrush, and other toiletries.

She sighed. "Then thank you."

She looked up and was temporarily blinded. She hardly noticed when he (and his 1000 watt smile) left the room.

Mentally, she decided to take stock. One lock…just barely hanging on. The grudge responsible for holding it was lying in a charred heap on the ground, and it seemed that the others attempting to repair the locks had failed to take cover. It looked like a grudge graveyard. 'Wait a minute? Where are the rest?' Granted, she hadn't seen them in a while…they hadn't even come out when Fuwa had attacked her. 'I nearly forgot about them…but where are they? Looks like Ren got killed this one…but…' She froze in horror. "Oh my gosh they're all dead!" She screeched. "How did this happen! I didn't think I could run out! What am I going to do! Who's going to hold the locks!

"Kyoko-chan?" She spun around and found Ren peeking through the door, confusion and concern on his face. He pulled the door the rest of the way and her face did its impression of a tomato. "Whom are you talking to? What 'locks'?"

"Um…no one. Just…lines! Lines for a script." He raised an eyebrow and she knew that he wasn't fooled, but she couldn't exactly say 'You've managed to kill off all the grudges holding the locks on my heart in place to keep me from falling in love with you!' Staring again at his (very nice) bare chest, her face grew darker. "Ren! Can't you get dressed in your own room?" She whined, covering her face with her hands. Suddenly, he was very, very close. She peeked out from between her fingers and he was bent over in front of her, staring into her eyes with a dark smirk.

"Kyoko-chan. Have you forgotten? This is my house…so they are all my rooms." She pressed her lips together, realizing that he was right. About to apologize, her voice failed her as the Emperor came out. "But we can share them if you want." He smiled when she just buried her face deeper in her hands. "How about it?"

"Ren! You are being mean! Stop teasing me." She whined, embarrassed. He laughed loudly and, after ruffling her hair, left her to change.

'I wasn't teasing.' He thought with a smirk.

Kyoko sat in between President Lory and Maria. Maria had been delighted to see her, and the President had greeted her warmly and then asked if she was doing okay. Despite being happy that she was spending time with Ren, he was sorry that it had happed as a result of her being attacked by Fuwa. A professional (threatening) letter had been immediately delivered to Fuwa by the President himself, and he had spoken with the boy, his manager, and the President of the agency. Also, Fuwa Sho was not allowed in LME without a member of security with him at all time. Now looking at the girl chatting away with Maria, he wondered if he had over reacted. 'No…he shouldn't be able to get away with that. But she seems okay. I'm glad.'

"So how has work been going?" He managed while Maria took a breath.

"Very well. Thank you." She smiled at the President who couldn't help but return it.

"How about Acting School?"

"Oh. I don't get to go as often as I like, but that's most because of Box R and Dark Moon, but since Dark Moon is nearly over, I should have more time. "

"Don't you think you will get more offers for Dramas?"

"Well…I'm just a newbie actress. They will probably want someone more experienced for their roles. But…I do hope that some day I will get to play the protagonist in a series, or a movie. But I don't think I'm good enough for…"

"Mogami-san, I'm not sure you realize how popular you are getting." He interrupted softly. Frowning adamantly, she shook her head.

"President, I'm sure that…"

"Would I lie to you Mogami-san?"

"Um…I don't nece…" His look shut her up. "No President."

"Good. Now that we have that settled, let's get started."

"Get started on what?"

Maria couldn't help but cut in. "On our day out!"

"Um Maria-chan?"

"We're going to go ice skating!"

Kyoko frowned at the random activity and looked at the President. He shrugged. "She loves ice skating, and she wanted you to join us."

"Do you like ice skating, Big sister?"

"I haven't done it in a while, but yes. It sounds like fun. I should warn you that I'm not very good at it."

"That's fine. I'm just learning, and Grandfather can't skate at all." Kyoko and Maria laughed at this while the President pretended to pout.

They spent a large portion of the day at the ice ring, with Maria skating circles around Kyoko, who quickly remembered how but stayed with Maria. The President sat on the sidelines and, unbeknownst to Kyoko, directed the party progress. Everything was coming together quickly, and all that was needed were the costumes and a few of the props. All of the building was complete, and the sets were finished.

When the girls were too tired to skate anymore, they dropped on the bleachers and rested. "Wow. The two of you are going to be sore tomorrow." The President idly observed as they panted. Maria laughed and Kyoko smiled at her. "Are you hungry yet?" Maria nodded but Kyoko stared at the floor shyly.

'He already insisted on paying for the rental skates and the entry fee for the ice ring. There's no way I can let him pay for anything else, but I don't…'

"Mogami-san, aren't you coming? We're going for lunch." The President and Maria were standing beside her, effectively interrupting her thoughts.

"Oh…" 'Well, it would be rude to refuse now…especially since Maria is hungry, and so am I.' "Okay, I'm coming." She smiled and jumped up.

At the restaurant (which was much nicer than Kyoko had anticipated) the President insisted on paying and Kyoko, with much restraint on her part, didn't not complain or argue. Instead she just thanked him and held a conversation with Maria, who was enjoying spending time with her beloved Big Sister.

Next was a movie, which the President allowed the girl's to choose, and Kyoko insisted that Maria choose. As she sat through the children's movie, laughing at Maria's reactions and sharing popcorn with them, she stopped briefly to think 'So this must be what it feels like to be a part of a family. This feeling…it's so strange, but it makes me so happy.' She blushed, then thought 'I hope that one day I can have this for myself.'

Late that evening, the President dropped Kyoko off at her home where she managed to explain, with much downplaying and apologies, to the Okami-san and Taisho-san, about why she had not come home the previous night. They waved away her apologies and the Okami-san told her that she was just glad she was okay. Before she had gone to bed, the Taisho had given her a gentle hug and told her to sleep well.

Laying in her futon she let her mind wander. 'I wonder what Ren is doing? Why do I keep thinking about him? Does that mean that I love him? I'm so confused about this, but I'll have to talk to him about it some time.' She sighed and rolled over. 'He seemed so upset about Sho…why does he hate Sho so much? And he said that he made up the 'Rule of the Heart' because he was jealous. Why would he be jealous?'

Peeking out of the opening box in her hear, three small angles, almost like the grudges, but with little halos floating above their heads, had a hold of the last lock and were lifting it. "Give her just a little longer and some more time with him." The leader said to the other two. "She's almost got it."


	8. Conversations

Monday

When Kyoko entered school on Monday, she was momentarily depressed when she was surrounded by the Halloween banners and the invitations and talk about the Halloween Ball, but then memories of Moko-san's words and the progress she had made with Ren, the assignment from Yashiro, and her day with Maria and the Present flooded her brain, and she couldn't help but smile. 'I'll remember this weekend for a long time, and that is so much more precious to me than some Ball at my school with people who I don't really know.'

It was a short day since students were excused from afternoon classes to either help prepare for the ball or go home or get ready. Deciding to finish some homework and then review her script for the next day's filming, Kyoko grabbed her things and headed for the library which she assumed would be empty due to the preparations in the gym. Walking past the door to the gym, she heard a rather familiar irritated voice amidst the screaming of girls (and apparently a few boys).

"Mo! Will you stop screaming! I'm sure you see him on TV all the time! He's not that handsome! Now will you please tell me where I can find Kyoko Mogami!"

Kyoko threw open the door to find an irritated Kanae and an amused Ren standing in the middle of a mob. Yashiro was standing by, keeping Ren's fans at a safe distance.

"MOKO-san!" Kyoko screamed and lunged for the actress who, just this once, opened her arms and wrapped them around her best friend, barely managing not to fly backwards from the impact.

"Told you I could find her." She tossed over her shoulder arrogantly to Yashiro.

"Dumb luck. She just heard you yelling at someone." He insisted.

"What are you doing here, Moko-san?"

"Picking you up. Are you ready?" Kyoko turned in surprise at the deep voice.

"Tsuruga-san, what are you doing here?" She asked politely, mindful of their audience, but Ren was having none of it.

"Kyoko," He stressed her name, "I've told you several times that you can just call me Ren. We are friends, aren't we?" He offered her a sad look, and she was immediately repentant.

"Of course we are Ren! I'm sorry." He reached out and grabbed her hand, enjoying the looks of surprise on the faces of male and females students alike.

'That's right. She's with me and I'm with her, so don't get any ideas.'

Kanae smirked at the stunned looks on the faces of some of the girls. Meeting the eyes of Agata and her group of friends, Kyoko couldn't help the sickeningly sweet condescending smile that appeared on her face. Most of the girls had the grace to look away. Agata sent her a cool glare and went back to the party preparations. Feeling a gentle pressure on her hand, Kyoko looked up at Ren who was smiling softly at her. Blushing that he had caught her being so arrogant, she started to apologize when he gave a cool smirk to the group of girls responsible for her initial misery and tugged her closer to him as they made their way out the door.

Kanae and Yashiro followed a close distance behind. As they exited the building, Kanae jerked her hand away when she walked too close to the manager and her hand brushed his. She hurried in front of him, refusing to acknowledge his presence. Smirking, Yashiro let her take the lead. He would show Ren a thing or two in time, but first he had to get the girl to talk to him.

After everyone was settled in Ren's car, with Kyoko and Kanae in the back, Kyoko spoke up again. "So why did you pick me up?"

"I thought we would do something together today and need a chauffer." Ren rolled his eyes in the front seat while Kyoko stared at her friend, torn between horror at her friend's treatment of Ren and joy that she wanted to spend time with her. Joy won out when Ren made no response and didn't seem particularly angry.

"So how was school, Kyoko?" He asked.

"Good. It was a short day and everyone was too distracted to do much."

"Tsuruga-san, can you drop us off here?" They were driving through a shopping district within walking distance of LME, though Kyoko had never been there since she couldn't afford the nicer shops.

"Sure Kotonami-san. Have a good time Kyoko." He smiled at the red haired actress who smiled and waved when he drove away, which didn't escape the attention of Kanae. She smirked and pulled Kyoko into an ice cream shop, wincing internally at both the pink décor and the calories she was about to consume.

The two ended up sharing a banana split (they also split the cost) and talking about Kyoko's relationship with Ren, much to Kyoko's discomfort. Despite this, she acknowledge that it felt good to talk with Kanae about it instead of just arguing with herself all the time. "So now you know for sure? You love him. I can tell by the way you look at him Kyoko, so you can stop shaking your head." Kyoko sighed and slumped in her booth. "Come on, how is this a bad thing. He obviously adores you! Like, today I was treating him like a common servant but he didn't care because he got to see you."

"Moko-san, you really were rude to him." Kyoko reprimanded her gently.

"That's because I wanted to see if I could get a reaction out of him." Kanae shrugged. "He's a big boy. He'll be fine. Besides, he was staring you instead of the road half the time we were in the car…I was going to call him out on it if he ran one more stop sign. And from the look of surprise on your face, you obviously were too busy staring at him to notice his lack of driving skills today. Yashiro-san had his hand on the door handle and was about to bail out." Kyoko giggled and then smirked at his friend.

"You were obviously watching Yashiro-san…"

To her surprise and great amusement, Kanae turned bright red. "Mo! We aren't talking about me, and I was not staring. He's just a friend…not even that! Just a coworker…a coworker of a friend of a friend!" Kyoko laughed but didn't fight her on it. "Anyway, we're talking about you and Tsuruga. Have you made up your mind to talk about him yet?" Kyoko stared at the table.

"I can't Moko-san! I'm too embarrassed." She mumbled the last bit.

"Why? If he loves you back what does it matter?"

"But what am I supposed to say? I'm in love with you?"

"Yes." She said bluntly. "Perfect. That ought to do it."

"MOKO-san, I could never do that! What if he just stares at me or...or laughs!"

"I thought we'd been over this?"

"No. I can't do that." She was adamant.

"Fine. Then just kiss him. That will work well enough. And then when he kisses you back, you'll know that he likes you too and you can say it without fear that he will laugh."

Kyoko was mortified. "Kiss him?" She squeaked. "I…I can't…I don't even know how…I've never kissed anyone…not really…. not willingly…." She stared at the empty ice cream container, redder than Kanae had ever seen her.

"Judging by the look on his face when I told him to give me a ride to see you today, I think he'll forgive your lack of kissing experience. It's pretty simple. Pucker your lips a touch his lips with yours and…well that's about all you need to worry about right now." 'He had better not try anything else with her at this point…'

"What if he just kisses me back to tease me and then laughs at me?"

"You don't have a very good image of your so called friend. What do you secretly think about me?" She asked indignantly. Realizing that Kanae was right, Kyoko fell silent. "Hey, don't worry about it right now." She said softly, then standing up and heading for the door, smirked and called over her shoulder, "You can confess your undying love to Tsuruga Ren later. Let's go shopping."

The blood rushed back to Kyoko's face when people turned to look at her with varying looks of amusement. She chased after her friend. "Moko-san! Don't say that so loudly!"


	9. The Halloween Party

By 4:00, Kanae had let Kyoko through most of the shops on the street. Although she couldn't afford to buy anything, Kyoko was having a wonderful time, despite Kanae's occasional teasing about 'confessing her undying love to Tsuruga Ren.' As they made their way through the last shop and admired a pair of boots that Kyoko was wishing she could buy, her phone vibrated. Frowning apologetically at her friend, she pulled it out.

"Hello?"

"Mogami-san, are you available right now? It's important."

"Um…I'm out with Moko…I mean Kotonami-san."

"Excellent. I need to see both of you. Where are you?" She named the shop and the district.

"Wonderful. I'll send a car."

"But sir, we're right by…" She frowned when she heard the dial tone. Sighing, she snapped her phone closed. "LME."

"Who was that?"

"The President. He wants to see us. I fell like I've seen him a lot lately."

"Hm. I wonder what he wants now. This is our day off." Kyoko smiled at her grumbling friend.

"Well, it must be important then. Otherwise he would probably wait until Monday." Kanae shrugged, using all of her powers as an actress not to smile in excitement.

The car arrived, driven by Lory's aid, drove past LME and to the President's mansion. Although confused, Kyoko chose not to comment. 'I guess the President didn't go in to the office today. '

When they entered the mansion, they were led by Lory's aid to a large office on the first floor. "Good morning ladies. Thank you for coming." Kyoko and Kanae bowed in greeting while Kyoko tried to figure out the meaning behind that mischievous smile. "I have a Love Me task for the two of you." Kyoko fought from moaning and restrained herself from informing him that they were off that day. "I know that you are off today, Mogami-san." Kyoko's eyes widened in shock. 'He's a mind reader!' "But I think that this shouldn't take too long and it will be beneficial. Kotonami-san, please follow Sebastian. He'll show you what to do." Kanae bowed and, giving a farewell wave to Kyoko, did as she was told. As soon as she was out of the door and out of sight, she grabbed her phone, sent out a text, and ran down the hall and up the stairs to a dressing room.

In another room nearby, Ren pulled out his phone. 'Step 3 of Phase 7 complete. Please initiate Phase 9.' Yashiro, stepping into the room, held up his phone with a glove-covered hand "Phase 9? What about Steps 1-9 of Phase 8? And I thought we were still on Phase 5 anyway!" Ren chuckled. "She's just making up numbers now! And I thought we were supposed to be on Step 8 of Phase 10 by this point…she told me that everyone had to memorize all of theses." Ren turned away and hid his laughed from his irate friend. Kotonami-san had only told him about Phase 1, so he had no idea what his manager was talking about, but had a hunch that his friend was right.

"Either way Yashiro, considering the time, I believe it is safe to assume that it is time to get ready." Still grumbling, Yashiro stormed out.

"Mogami-san, would you please follow Woods-san?" Kyoko bowed.

"Of course."

In a room that was filled with cosmetics and material, Kyoko stood rooted to the floor. "This isn't another 'Dangerous Mission' is it?" She asked quietly.

"Haha. No, Kyoko. Now please take a seat." Seeing the hesitation on the girl's face, she grinned. "Trust me Kyoko. You are going to like this." Sighing, Kyoko nodded and sat down on the make up chair, closing her eyes.

Kanae pulled on her costume, cursing her previous request for the President to give everyone costumes. How was she to know that he would stick her in a (rather slutty) cat costume? She glared at herself in the mirror. "I don't look like a cat! I look like a hooker with cat ears and a tail." She snapped at herself. The shirt barely covered her stomach and was black to match the ears, tail, and (obscenely short) skirt. "He's just being mean now!" She cried, slouching against the wall, then hurriedly crossing her legs when she realized just how short the skirt was.

Yashiro pulled on his costume, cursing Kanae's request for the President to give everyone costumes. 'But how could she know that the President would make him wear a (rather tight) cat costume?' He winced as he took in his appearance. "I don't look like a cat! I look like a…(he blushed) a stripper." He whispered the word. "with cat ears and a tail." The shirt was tight and see through in the chest area, with black material to match the ears, tail, and (rather tight) pants. He dropped his head in his hands. "I'm never going to live this down."

Kanae waited outside of the room where she knew Kyoko was being prepped. When Miss Woods opened the door and let her in, she was stunned. Her friend's face was done in light make up, with eyeliner being the only thing used generously, but the dress was perfect. The low cut light blue ball gown hugged her sides and then flared out, though not so much that it would make it hard to walk in a crowd. The glass slippers on her feet and the long blonde wig completed the outfit, along with a choker to bring attention to her slim neck. "Mo." She whispered in amazement.

Kyoko turned her bright, excited eyes on Kanae. "Moko! I'm Cinder….ella…" Her voice trailed off when she took in Moko's appearance. "Um…Moko….why are you dressed like a hoo…like that?" Kanae was too busy taking in her friend's appearance to answer.

'Tsuruga is going to love this…' She grinned and grabbed her friend's hand. "Come on. We get to do this part of the assignment together." Kyoko gave her a confused smile then followed her friend as she tugged her along.

They suddenly entered a very dark room, and the door slammed shut behind them. "Moko-san?" Kyoko asked uncertainly.

"Don't worry. It's fine. Come on. It's the President's mansion. What could happen?'

'Anything!' Kyoko screamed in her head, following uncertainly through what felt like a dark tunnel. She squeaked when she touched a wall and found it wet and rough, like the walls of a cave. She could hear the buzzing of insects and, suddenly, very viscous sounding dogs barking and snarling. "Moko-san?" Kanae smiled ahead of her.

"Come on. I see a door." The finally made it to the door which had a dim light shining through. Kanae pulled the door open and suddenly the two girls were on a balcony at the head of a flight of stairs. The room was dim, but Kyoko could tell that it was full of people. Surprised, she took in her surroundings. The room was one big set, with several buffet tables pushed to the side and overflowing with food. A few tables were set up and people were eating. The set walls, nearly as tall as the vaulted ceiling, were covered in Halloween scenery, with dark forests, the outline of a creepy looking castle, and a group of witches around a cauldron all being displayed. The middle of the floor was being used as a dance floor, and the President had a sound system set up on a stage in the front of the room. Suddenly, his booming voice filled the room.

"Welcome everyone to our Halloween Party!" There was cheering and Kyoko cocked her head in confusion. Kanae smiled at her. "Please welcome our guest of honor, Kyoko Mogami!" There was loud cheering and Kyoko blushed, backing away. A spotlight came from the ceiling to shine on them.

"Surprise." Kanae whispered. Stunned Kyoko looked at her. Then it clicked.

"Moko-san!" She threw her arms around her best friend and laughed, tears filling her eyes.

"Don't ruin your make-up. Mo. Come on." Stepping forward, Kanae led her down the staircase covered in a red carpet.

Whispering now, as the entire room was silent as it watched them descend, Kyoko leaned in toward Kanae. "How did you do all this?"

"Easy. I asked the your friends to help."

"My…friends?" They reached the bottom of the staircase where Yashiro (who's outfit made Kyoko blush and look away, much to his own embarrassment), Maria (In a witch costume), The President (as a ninja), and finally Ren, in a long cloak with the collar pulled up around his neck, stood at the bottom of the staircase. "Actually, everyone here helped in some way, but they," she gestured around the group, "gave up most of their weekend to put this together." She leaned in. "We have pictures of Tsuruga and Yashiro in a paint fight." The two men smiled, knowing that this was going be used against them. Kyoko stared at the ground, tears in her eyes.

"You didn't have to….I could….I mean…I can never pay you…"

"Mo! You don't have to pay us back. We did it because we wanted to make you happy. Now cheer up! Have fun." Kyoko looked up in surprise at her smiling friend and hugged her. "Ugh. Don't get used to this." Kanae grumbled as she hugged her back. Kyoko giggled and turned to the group.

"Thank you." She whispered shyly. They all smiled and hugged her, until she came to Ren. The others seemed to disappear (which they actually did…this part was planned by Kanae, the President, and Yashiro, unbeknownst to Ren.)

"Dracula, I presume?" She grinned up at him. He smiled in response, showing off some intimidating looking fangs. "You aren't going to bite me are you?" Her heart skipped as his eyes turned dark.

'Not yet.' He thought with a smirk. Seeing her embarrassed face, he stepped closer. "You look beautiful." He said softly. She was suddenly aware that they had transported to the other side of the staircase, hidden from the rest of the party. 'How does he do that?' She wondered absentmindedly. He brought his hand to her face, and then touched her hair. Frowning softly, he began to remove the pins that held the wig onto her hair. Gently, he removed the wig and threw it onto a chair. "Now, you look absolutely stunning." She wondered how red her face was, but couldn't concentrate with his face suddenly so close.

'Well, I guess now is as good a time as ever.' She slowly closed the distance between them, touching her lips with his. Embarrassment was forgotten as electricity jolted through her. Immediately he moved his lips against her, not minding her lack of experience at all. When she pulled away, her breath caught at the loving smile on his face. 'So that's what that smile means.' She returned it and let him pull her against him. "I love you." She whispered into his chest. He squeezed her tightly, kissing her hair.

"I love you too."

The two emerged from the staircase, trying to look nonchalant and failing miserably. The President kept grinning at them and Kanae was smirking at Kyoko and sending warning glares to Ren. Her last words when they were alone had been "If you hurt her I will kill you." Music began to play and Ren pulled Kyoko onto the dance floor. Kanae watched with a smile as he twirled her around. From the other side of the room, the Taisho and the Okami-san, dressed as a devil and an angel respectively, watched as well. The Okami laughed at the sullen look on her husband's face.

"Honey, you're just mad that he didn't ask you about this first." Sighing, the cook stared at the ground, trying not to think about the incident a few minutes earlier.

Ren had pulled him aside when no one was around, the vampire leading the devil to the corner. "Sir, I need to speak with you."

"Hmm."

"You consider Kyoko your daughter, correct?" The man nodded soundlessly. "I love your daughter. And I have every intention to make her mine. But I wanted to secure your blessing first." The older man looked into the eyes of the sincere young man and nodded, his glare lessening slightly. The vampire had bowed and excused himself.

Standing by his wife, the Taisho watched the girl he considered a daughter twirl around the dance floor with the man who loved her. "You know, I'm really going to miss her." The Okami said with misty eyes, touching her husband's arm. The Taisho grunted in agreement, putting an arm around his wife.

Yashiro stood beside the President, watching the show. As the dance finished, Kyoko found herself dancing with everyone, first being passed between three playful werewolves, the shortest of which she called Hikaru, Kajima, and several of the cast and crew of both Dark Moon and Box R. Even Ogata-san took a break from dancing with Asami-san to dance with the smiling actress. "President, I have a question."

"Yes."

"Why are Kotonami-san and I a matching pair?"

"Because you like each other. All the couples tonight are matching pairs." Yashiro stared in confusion first at Kyoko, then at Ren.

"Cinderella…and Dracula!"

The President chuckled. "I think they suit each other. Matching pairs don't always look like they go together in life, Yashiro." The men turned their attention to the cat actress drinking from a glass of what looked like blood. "But I figured you could use all the help you could get."

Once the dancing was over, the President took the stage. "Kyoko!" He called. The girl stepped from Ren's arms and looked at him. "Please come to the stage." Kyoko smiled and made her way up to him. "As you all know, this party was arranged for Kyoko Mogami. Now, Kyoko, I have one more surprise for you." The girl cocked her head in confusion, then gasped as a tall blonde vampire joined her on the stage.

"Father!" She screamed and jumped into his arms, letting the tears fall down her face. The man smiled and squeezed her gently, rocking her back and forth. "I missed you." She whispered.

"I missed you too. Did you really think I would miss your surprise Halloween Party?" She laughed at the silliness of the statement and hugged him tighter.

Off stage, Ren smiled warily. The fact that there were only two vampires in the room had not escaped him. Kyoko and Kuu joined him on the floor. "Father, you remember Tsuruga-Ren?"

"Yes. The President tells me that you are now dating my daughter." Kuu grinned and shook his hand firmly. Kyoko turned bright red and stared at the floor.

"It's nice to see you again, Hizuri-san." Ren smiled tightly, wrapping an arm around Kyoko.

"Nonsense! You're dating my daughter and we're both dressed as vampires. We must be family!" Kuu laughed and Ren clenched his teeth.

'Subtle, Dad. Subtle.'

Kyoko thought this must be a dream. Ren, her father, and all of her friends in the same room, talking, dancing, eating, and just having a good time, all happy to see her, and all wanting to see her smile. She spent the whole night laughing or crying, dancing or being held. The food was fantastic, though most of it was Halloween themed. Kyoko laughed at the expression on Ren's face when he picked up an eyeball. As many times as he could, her father would steal her away from him and twirl her around the dance floor, making her laugh and wish the dream would never end.

On the other hand, Ren was constantly reminding himself that this was real. As soon as she finished dancing or talking with someone, he was there, desperate to hold her or touch her in some way. 'She's mine. I've got her. She's mine and she loves me and that's all I need.' He laughed when he saw her twirl around the room with other men, the delight on her face warming his heart, but he was always anxious to have her in his arms again. 'Yes. You can dance with her. This is a special occasion. But don't get any ideas.'

Later that evening, as the party was wrapping up, Kyoko found Kanae talking to Yashiro. "Moko-san!" She hugged her friend again quickly and stepped back before she could complain. Yashiro wandered off to change. "Thank you so much!"

"You're welcome. I'm glad you had fun."

"Moko-san, can I ask you something? Who picked out the costumes?"

"Um, Woods-san made them all, and the President handed them out." She hesitated. "I chose yours thought."

"Why Cinderella?" She asked.

Kanae smiled gently and took her hands. Gesturing to the middle of the floor where all her friends stood, with Ren and Kuu chatting in the middle of the group, Kanae looked into Kyoko's eyes. "Mo Kyoko. Look at your story. It couldn't have been anyone else."


	10. Revelations

Kyoko leaned against the passenger seat window, staring at the passing scenery. Every once in a while she felt a gentle pressure on her hand. Turning, she met Ren's eyes. She squeezed back, offering him a tired smile. He hadn't stopped trying to be near her all night, and she couldn't say she minded. Kyoko glanced at the digital clock. 11:00. 'Wow. The party went really late. ' Maria had gone to bed about an hour ago, after saying goodnight to both Ren and Kyoko, and many of the people from Box R or Dark Moon had left early because of filming the next day. Kuu was staying until Wednesday and had promised all of Tuesday (that she could spare) to Kyoko.

"Did you have a good time?" Ren's voice brought her out of her thoughts.

"I had a wonderful time." She laughed. "I can't believe you all managed to keep it a secret. What about you?"

He squeezed her hand again, bringing it up to her lips. She blushed. "Best night of my life." He said against her hand, and then placed it back on her lap.

When they arrived at the hotel, Ren fought to keep his eyes off Kyoko's obscenely short skirt. 'Still in high school, still in high school, still in high school.' He repeated it like a mantra as he led her to the entrance of the hotel. Although they were dressed as Setsu and Cain, neither wanted to act out their characters just yet. However, both adopted the bored, threatening attitudes as they made their way to their room, with Cain draping his arm around his little sister, in effect draping part of his coat around her shoulders to keep her hidden from the men standing around in the lobby and the hallway.

As soon as they entered the room, they dropped their characters and placed their suitcases on the beds. Kyoko sat down on her bed and began to unpack, trying to ignore Ren's eyes on her. "Are you hungry?" She asked quietly. He sat beside her on the bed.

"I think we have some things to talk about." He ignored her question.

'It was a mistake. He doesn't love me. He's going to break up with me…' The thoughts raced through her head. Seeing her panicked, fearful look he took her hands.

"I love you." He leaned forward and kissed her gently. "But this may be a bit more complicated than you think." She frowned at him, but he knew she was listening. "First, we need to decide if we are going to try and keep this a secret. Also…there is the problem of..." He took a deep breath. 'I love her. I have to tell her. Not everything. Not even most of it…just something.' "Well of my name. "

"Your name? Oh. You mean your stage name." She wondered what his real name was, not that it mattered, but thinking of him as something other than Ren would take getting used to.

"It's Kuon." He blurted.

"You have the same name as Father's…son…" He could see the exact moment when she got it.

"I'm sorry."

"You're father's son."

"I'm so sorry." He pulled her against him. "Please don't be angry with me. I couldn't say anything." She sat quietly in the circle of his arms, taking it in. "Say something?"

"I'm so sorry."

"What?'

"You must have thought I was being so rude when I was acting as you."

"No!" He held her at arm's length and looked into her eyes. "No, I did not. I thought you were wonderful. And my Father obviously loves you." She stared at the floor. "He calls you his daughter now."

"But he's your father!" She cried.

His eyes darkened a bit and he smirked. "I'm more than willing to share him if it's with you." Leaning in, he kissed her again. This time she kissed him back, copying his movements against her lips. When she felt his tongue on her lips, she squeaked and pulled away, blushing. He looked at her sheepishly. 'STILL. IN. HIGH. SCHOOL!'

"Sorry." He kissed her cheek and went to finish unpacking. "We'll take it slow, okay?" She smiled softly and nodded.

'One day, he'll tell me the whole story. For tonight, I'm just glad to be with him.'

Kanae glanced up from where she was sweeping to meet the eyes of the man standing next to her. "Yes, Yashiro-san."

"Well I was just thinking, since Ren and Kyoko already left…" he hesitated when he saw realized she was glaring at him. "maybe we could…get some dinner…or something?"

"I'm not hungry." She snapped.

"Okay…how about coffee?

"I'm busy tomorrow. I'm going home after this."

"Would you like me to walk you home."

"Mo! So what, you think that, because my best friend and your friend are now dating that we automatically have to get together?" She snapped at him.

"Uh…no. I just…"

"You just what!"

"Just...forget it!" He hissed and, turning on his heels, stormed away. He passed the President on his way out the door and was surprised when he realized that the man was chuckling. "What?"

"You're going to try harder than that. If you keep giving up so easily, you'll never get her."

Kanae stopped cleaning at around 11:30 when the President told her that he would have his staff finish up the next day. Thanking him again, she headed for the door where she found Yashiro leaning against the doorframe. "What are you still doing here?"

"Waiting to walk you home. Come on." He straightened and held the door open for her.

"…Mo! I thought I said."

He took her hand and pulled her through the door. "Yes yes, come on. The quicker I get you home the quicker I can get home and go to bed. Ren has filming pretty early tomorrow."

"No one said you had to…."

"Yes I know. Now come on." He led her down the street by the hand until she stopped yelling at him. "Now isn't it nicer when you aren't yelling at me?" He asked mildly. "So what time do you finish tomorrow?"

"7. Why?" She asked warily.

"Ren goes until 8, but he'll probably want to finish early because of Kyoko…well how about I pick you up at 8:30, just to be safe. We can have a late dinner…surely you'll be hungry by then. I am giving you plenty of warning." She stared at him incredulously. He looked back at her. "Hmm?"

She shrugged carelessly. "Fine. Whatever." 'Who knows. Maybe Kyoko's won't be the only Cinderella story around here.'

And so, they all (well most of them) lived (relatively) happily ever after (most of the time…eventually)


End file.
